(photo courtesy of Pavel Danilyuk/Pexels)
The 2026 Louisiana Startup report finds the state’s startup businesses are optimistic about their futures. 143 startups and small businesses across the state were surveyed by Tulane and Louisiana Innovation to gauge the business landscape in the state. Rob Lalka, the executive director of the Albert Lepage Center at Tulane, says businesses are committed to Louisiana.
“So often we hear the story of ‘The brains are running away from Louisiana,’ and we worry about states like Texas or otherwise pulling our greatest founders away; but the ones that we are talking to are committed to Louisiana,” Lalka said.
Two-thirds of respondents reported plans to add employees in the next year. Lalka says officials can use this data to inform policies to help them develop.
“It means that we need to do more to support them, especially in terms of access to capital and access to talent, and that’s what we see in the data too; that they are seeking to grow,” Lalka noted.
Limited financing was the most frequently cited barrier to growth, but Lalka says the businesses are raising more capital and more of it is coming from Louisiana.
76% of businesses said AI improved productivity, while nearly half reported a favorable impact on sales. However, Lalka says it’s a mixed bag.
“They’re both very excited about AI, in terms of the opportunities it brings; they’re also concerned about the way it’s changing the way that we work and the way that they are trying to build their companies,” Lalka explained.
You can listen to the interview with Rob Lalka here:
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